In my latest presentation to the Roaring Women's Group of Vancouver I shared a lot of information on common obstacles to getting and staying organized.

What I didn't have enough time to cover was the 'Barriers' we come across when faced with the prospect of having to 'Let Go'.

Obstacles and Barriers do cover some common ground, yet Barriers are more focused on the fears we have. Rather than going into details on the dozen of barriers that can be faced, today I will talk about one important barrier. That barrier that involves us hanging onto unwise purchases we regret.

When you catch yourself saying this, it should be a sign that you need to seriously consider letting this item go!

Why, may you ask?

Because holding onto to something only because it cost too much is like holding onto crashing stocks. We fear that if we get rid of the object which we now regret buying, that we will make this loss ‘real’.

It is 'real' already. Hanging onto this object of ‘regret’ however does nothing more than to remind us of our mistake.

Ask yourself. Can someone else make use of this? Can I donate it and get a tax deduction? Can a sell it?

Make the choice to free yourself from clutter that only serves to make you feel bad and make more room for 'happy' in your world instead.

Instant results! Done in no time! Faster than ever! Push button technology! Get it now!

Western culture's way has us all believing that we can have anything done in a 'snap'. It will be 'easy' and all we need to do is push a button and our problems are solved.

Yes, it's true that our microwaves, digital cameras, remote controls and other 'push-button' technology has made some things easy, and given us back a little extra time. So why do we still hear "I don't have enough time!"? Perhaps we do have enough time, if we just stopped and organized it a little better.

When I have the honor of looking into an office or home that someone wants to have organized, I can approximately estimate how long it will take. A couple of important variables are the expectations about what the final results will look like, and of course what we find along the way, which may require more attention.

I have been in 20 hour homes and I have been in 200 hour homes and I can tell you that in either case one thing is constant. One hour is one hour and in one hour you can do only one hour worth of work. No instant fixes, no 'push-button' solutions and no modern technology can change this fact. You can of course have the help of extra hands to help make this go faster.

If you or someone you know has a space that is aching to be reclaimed, can you guess how many hours it could take?

What I do know is this; if there is a mess, it didn't get there overnight and it won't disappear overnight either. Besides, what's the rush? Oh yes, those instant results we are used to. Actually, when it comes to some projects that I have been hired to work on, I really wish sometimes I could be locked in, given free reign and allowed to 'have-at-it!". Of course this may in fact lead to a burn out so doing work in intervals is fine and gets the work done over time regardless.

With this is mind, lets now consider how frustrating it may be for someone faced with a 200 hour home. If they come to the realization that they could work diligently for hours and not 'see' the difference, how disheartening this could be for them. What is an important thing to remember, however, when faced with this prospect, is that just because the first portion of work won't be 'noticed', does not mean it is wasted time.

For example, if you had 10 pounds to lose and lost 5 pounds, it would show right away. Just like 5 hours on a 10 hour kitchen. Yet if you had a goal to lose 100 pounds, 5 pounds would not show right away. On a 200 hour home this could mean you’ll need to put in 40 hours to start 'seeing' the difference and enjoy the benefits increased organization brings.

Remember; a pound is a pound, an hour is an hour, and it will 'show' in time. Starting and working through the process, one step at a time, is what will make the difference.

Many of the wonderful people that have allowed me to come into their homes and offices are talented, intelligent people that have just let things go for a while. That same 'while' is just waiting for things to change direction, that's all.

As inspired to write about this today, I must pay homage to two wonderful ladies, Pam Young and Peggy Jones, also known as the "Slob Sisters'. Their book "Get Your Act Together: A 7-day get-organized program for the overworked, overbooked and overwhelmed" is an informative, insightful, entertaining and practical guide to help anyone get organized.

There are many professional organizing gurus that offer expertise, their systems and even their personal experiences to help improve the state of our lives and our homes. These two wonderful ladies are in that category!